Washing machine



Dec. 26, 1933.

L. B. GREEN WASHING MACHINE Filed March 2, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet l Qwownfoc Dec. 26, 1933. 1.. B. GREEN 1,941,259

WASHING MACHINE Filed March 2, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 a ,39 7 i u l 3 :7 a w Dec. 26, 1933.

L. B. GREEN WASHING MACHINE Filed March 2, 1928 mmmv/g 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Dec. 26, 1933 UNITED STATES WASHING MACHINE Lee BrGi'een, Lakewood,

Borden'Company, Warren, Ohio,

of Ohio Ohio, assignor to Th a corporation Application March 2, 1928. Serial No. 258,521

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in washing machines, and has reference particularly to machines embodying an oscillator or oscillating agitator.

In machines of this character a fairly intense agitation of the water in the tub is necessary for a rapid washing of the clothes. In the case of heavy, coarse fabrics, such an intense agitation is desirable, but for fine, lacy materials or materials which are delicate because of age, such a heavy agitation is objectionable for the reason that it is apt to tear the articles washed. The provision of different degrees of agitation for different washing operations is, therefore, desir- 1 able.

One of the objects of my invention is the provision of means for varying the degree of agitation of the water in washing machines by changing the length of stroke of the oscillating agitator.

Another object is the provision in such connection of means for changing the stroke during the actuation of the agitator.

, A further object is the stopping of the washing operation by reducing the length of stroke of the agitator to zero, thus doing away with the use of a clutch and the shifting of gears into or out of mesh, the gears employed in my invention remaining constantly in mesh.

Another object is the provision of means for sealing the joint between the tub and the operating shaft which extends upwardly thereinto.

Another object is the arrangement of the driving mechanism as a unit in a casing which is readily removable and replaceable in the event that repairs become necessary, thus avoiding transportation of the entire machine to and from the repair shop and also making it possible to install temporarily a substitute unit in order that the use of the machine need not be inter-,

rupted for any material length of time.

Still another object is the provision of a casing for the driving mechanism which is oil-tight 4 and within which lubricating oil may be circulated freely.

Other objects and features of novelty will appear as I proceed with the description of those embodiments of the invention which, for the purposes of the present application, I have illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical central section through a portion of a washing machine, illustrating particularly the oscillating agitator and the driv 5 ing mechanism therefor, the latter being shown in the position which it occupies when the oscillator is still;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the parts in the position which they occupy when the oscillator is being driven;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3 Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the machine, certain of the parts being broken away and others shown in section in order to more clearly illustrate the invention;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the mechanism for shifting the position of the driving crank pin in the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5, illustrating a modified form of the invention; and

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the mechanism illustrated in Fig. 6.

Similar reference characters refer to like parts throughout the views.

In the drawings I have illustrated at 10 the upper portion of a hollow cylindrical pillar which I prefer to employ as the sole support for the driving mechanism and tub of the machine. This pillar is constructed preferably of heavy sheet metal. Its upper end is open to receive a casing 11 which fits closely but not tightly within the pillar. The casing 11 has an annular shoulder 12 which rests upon the upper edge of the pillar 10 by means of which the casing is supported. Accidental movement between these two parts may be prevented by removable fastenings, such as set-screws 13.

The casing 11 has a top 14 which is connected with the casing proper by a lap joint 15, as shown particularly in Fig. 3. The top is fastened down by some suitable means which may take the form of a sheet metal cylinder 16 flanged at its upper end to extend inwardly over the top, as at 17, and secured at a plurality of points around its periphery to the casing 11, as by screws 18. The lower end of the casing is closed by a plate 19 removably fastened to the side walls by screws 20. 100

The cylinder 16 carries an annular, flared supporting member 21 upon which is a ring-shaped tub seat 22, the member 21 having an inner vertical flange 23 which is attached to the cylinder 16 by welding or the like. A fragment of the tub, which may be of any suitable form, is shown at 24. A rather large circular opening is formed in the base of the tub around the center thereof, and the rim 25 of the tub around this opening is formed to rest flatly upon the flange 17. A clamping ring 26 lies above the rim 25, and fastening screws 27 ex end through aligned openings in the ring 26, rim 25 and flange 17 and are screwed into threaded openings in the casing top 14. This joint is made water-tight. The horizontal portion of the top 14, therefore, forms a continuation of the tub 25, it being provided at the center with an opening in which is mounted a bushing 28 for the rotatable mounting of an operating shaft 29 of the washing apparatus.

On the upper end of shaft 29 there is secured by means of a pin 30 a sleeve 31, the outer surface of which is splined to receive internal splines on the hub 32 of an oscillator or oscillating agitator 33. The hub 32 at its lower end rests and moves upon a fixed bearing 34 having spaced legs 35 which merge afftheir lower ends into a ring 36 that is secured at intervals to the top 14 of the casing 11 by means of .screws 37. The bearing 34 is made large enough to take a bushing 38, as shown. The agitator 33 may be held against upward movement by a cap 39 threaded upon a stud 40 extending upwardly from the end of the shaft 29.

The normal level of water in the tub 24 is well above the bushing 28, and in fact above the top of the agitator. I prevent leakage through the opening in the top 14, however, by the following means. A metal sylphon 41 is formed at its lower end with an outwardly extending flange which is clamped between the ring 36 and the top 14 of the casing, making a watertight joint. The upper end of the sylphon is attached, as by means of welding, to a sealing ring 42 which I prefer to form a graphite bronze in order that it may have natural lubricating qualities. This ring is smoothly surfaced upon its lower face which contacts with the smooth upper surface of a collar 43 .shrunk onto the shaft 29. The ring 42 is resiliently pressed against the collar 43 by a coil spring 44 which presses at its upper end against the bearing 34. By this means I provide a rotating joint between the ring 42 and collar 43 which is tight enough to prevent water leakage.

Now referring to the driving mechanism for oscillating the shaft 29, within the casing there are integral, radial webs 45, preferably three in number, which support a sleeve 46 that may or may not be integral with the webs 45. Within this sleeve 46 is rotatably mounted the hub 47 of a horizontal worm-wheel 48. Inside the hub 47 I mount rotatably the elongated hub 49 of a spur gear 50. During the normal operation of the machine the hubs 47 and 49, and, consequently, the gears 48 and 50 rotate together. This effect is produced by the intermediacy of a stem 51 which has a sliding but non-rotating engagement with the hub 47 by virtue of longitudinal splines 52 in the stem cooperating with internal teeth on a ring 53 that is secured to the hub 47 by means of screws 54. The stem 51, therefore, cannot turn with respect to the hub 47. Furthermore, when the stem 51 is in a given longitudinal position it is locked with respect to the hub 49 by means of spiral splines or ribs 55 which fit within spiral grooves 56 in the hub 49. The longitudinal movement of the stem 51, however, produces a limited relative rotation between the stem and the hub 49 due to the spiral ribs and grooves, as will be obvious.

The spur gear 50 is in mesh constantly with a rack 57 that is slidably mounted in a track in the upper surface of the worm-wheel 48, this rack being attached to a carrier 58 which is also slidable in ways upon the worm-wheel 48, being held against displacement by retaining bars 59 which are secured by screws 60 to the wheel 48.

The carrier 58 has mounted therein the lower end 61 of a crank pin. This crank pin has an enlarged, protruding portion 62 which extends beyond the carrier 58 to perform the ordinary function of a crank pin. The carrier 58 is normally fixed upon the wheel 48, and hence the pin 61, 62 normally functions like an ordinary crank pin upon a rotating wheel.

The portion 62 of the crank pin has a rotative bearing in a block 63 which is mounted within a Scotch yoke 64 and is adapted to produce reciprocating motion of the yoke as the crank pin turns, in accordance with the ordinary mode of operation of a Scotch yoke mechanism. The yoke 64 is provided with aligned arms 65 and 66 that extend laterally outward and are slidably mounted in cylindrical guides 67 and 68 respectively, these guides being located in suitable openings formed partially in the casing 11 and partially in the cover 14 therefor, and being locked to the casing or to the cover by means of screws 69 which extend through arc-shaped flanges 70 on the guides and are threaded into the casing. The yoke is prevented from tipping in its guides by tracks 71 depending from the casing top 14.

On the upper side of the yoke 64 I mount a rack 72, securing it to the yoke by means of screws 73 or the like. This rack meshes with a pinion 74 that is pinned to the lower end of shaft 29.

The worm-wheel 48 is driven by a. worm 75 mounted upon a shaft 76 which extends through the casing 11. This shaft will be driven by a suitable motor, not shown.

In order to provide for the thorough lubrication of the driving mechanism, I utilize the lower part of the casing 11 as an oil sump, and provide a pump for raising oil from the sump and delivering it to the moving parts. This may be accomplished conveniently in the following manner. An oil passage 78 is formed in the cylindrical guide 67 and communicates through a check valve 79 with an oil intake pipe 80 extending to the bottom of the casing 11. The outlet from the pump is by way of a drilled passage 81 in the arm 65, which passage is in communication with the pumping space 82 through a check valve 83. As the arm 65 moves to the left, Figs. 1 and 2, oil is drawn into the space 82, and as it moves to the right oil is forced into the passage 81. The latter has an upturned portion 84 which causes a stream of oil to be played upon the pinion '74 and the lower end of shaft 29, from which the oil is deflected onto the rack 72 and into an oil pocket 85 in the crank pin and into passage 84', 81 in the arm 66, as well as into the shallow chamber formed on the upper side of the wormwheel 48, that is, above the web and within the rim of said wheel. From the pocket 85 oil passages 86 lead to the periphery of the upper part 62 of the crank pin so as to lubricate the bearing of the latter.

The lower end of stem 51 has a grooved collar 82 secured thereto, within which rides a yoke 88. A vertical pin 89 secured in the yoke 88 has a sliding fit within a bore 90 formed in one of the webs 45, for the purpose of guiding the movement of the yoke 88. The latter is actuated manually by any suitable means, as, for instance, by a link 91 pivotally mounted upon a pin 92 extending laterally from the yoke 88, the upper end of the link 91 being pivotally connected with a crank arm 93 (see Fig. 4) that is attached to a short rock shaft 94 having a bearing in the casing 11 and protruding therethrough, said shaft being adapted to be turned by a crank arm 95 located exteriorly of the casing.

Figs. 6 and '7 illustrate a modified means for shifting the crank pin of the driving mechanism. In this modification the spur gear 50 and the wormwheel 48 have identically the same relation with each other as in the first described embodiment of the invention, and in this second form of the invention the angular relation between the gear 50 and the worm-wheel 48 may be varied by the same spiral rib and groove mechanism as is employed in the first form. The spiral gear 50, however, meshes with an arc-shaped rack 96 which is fastened by screws 97 to the under side of a sector 98 that is adapted to swing upon a pivot 99 threadably mounted in the web of the worm-wheel 48. This sector 98 has a fiange 100 which moves in a guide groove in a retainer block 101 that is secured to the web of the wormwheel by screws 102 or the like. The crank pin 62 is fixed in the sector 98. If desired, an arcshaped boss 103 may be provided on the upper surface of the worm-wheel 48 upon which the rack 96 may bear.

Operation.Assume that the motor 77 is running and turning the shaft 76, worm '75 and worm-wheel 48, but that the stem 51 is at the low limit of its adjustment, as illustrated in Figs; 1 and 3. At this time the crank pin 61, 62 is in the center of the wheel 48, and the rotation of the wheel 48 therefore produces no movement of the block 63 and the Scotch yoke 64. Now, if it is desired to start the operation of the washing apparatus, the operator moves the crank 95 to raise stem 51 to any desired extent through the rock shaft 94, crank arm 93, link 91, yoke 88 and collar 87. As the stem 51 rises, the spiral ribs 55 thereon working in the spiral grooves 56 serve to produce relative rotation between the stem 51 and the hub 49 of the gear 50, it being remembered that the stem 51 and hub 49 are rotating continuously with the worm-wheel 48. This relative motion between the spur gear 50 and the worm-wheel 48 causes a movement of the rack 57 across the surface of the worm-wheel, and the rack 5'7 being attached to the crank pin carrier 58 produces a travel of the latter upon the wheel. The crank pin 61, 62 being mounted in the carrier 58 is, therefore, caused to'travel away from the axis of the wheel 48 radially outward for a distance, depending upon the extent of movement of the stem 51.

As soon as the crank pin 61, 62 leavesthe axis of the wheel 48, it begins to impart movement to the block 63 and; hence, to the Scotch yoke 64, and the reciprocation of the latter imparts oscillation to the pinion 74 through the rack 72 which is carried by the yoke. The stroke of the rack 72 and hence the angle of oscillation of the pinion 74 may be varied between zero and the maximum to any extent desired, and thus the degree of agitation of water in the tub may be controlled exactly as the operator wishes. The angularity of the ribs and grooves 55, 56 is such that the load upon the crank pin 61, 62 cannot cause a reverse movement of the rack 57 and gear 50. In other words, the crank pin shifting mechanism is irreversible. As the gears and racks remain constantly in mesh, any desired movement of the crank pin shifting mechanism may be performed while the driving mechanism is operated. In Fig. 2 the crank pin 61, 62 is illustrated in its position of maximum throw, the stem 51 being raised to the limit of its upward adjustment. In this position the agitator 33 oscillates through 90 its maximum arc and the washing operation proceeds at its maximum speed. For finer and more delicate fabrics, the agitation of the water may be reduced to any extent desired down to an almost imperceptible movement. The advantages of such a thorough control are obvious. To stop the washing operation altogether, it is, of course, only necessary to again push the stem 51 down to the limit of its movement, that is, to the position illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3.

The shifting of the crank pin in the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 6 and '7 is brought about by exactly the same control mechanism as in the previously described form, but the rack 96 swings in an arc instead of moving in a 105 straight line as does the rack 57. Consequently the crank pin 62 in Fig. 6 moves in a slightly curved path instead of in an absolutely straight line but the resulting action is substantially the same, and all of the mechanism operated by the crank pin may be the same as in the first form described.

Numerous changes in detail construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention, and, accordingly, I desire it to be understood that the foregoing description and the particular constructions illustrated in the drawings are not to be construed as limitations upon the scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a washing machine, a tub, a vertical operating shaft extending upwardly into said tub through an opening in the bottom thereof, a sealing ring resiliently pressed against a portion of said shaft below the normal level of water in said tub, and a sylphon interposed between said ring and the tub surrounding said opening,'the joints at the ends of said sylphon being water-tight.

2. In a washing machine, a tub, a vertical operating shaft extending upwardly into said tub through an opening in the bottom thereof, an annular shoulder on said shaft below the normal level of water in the tub, a sealing ring, means for resiliently pressing said ring against said shoulder, and a sylphon having a water-tight connection with said ring and with said tub surrounding said opening.

LEE B. GREEN. 

